You'll Want to Sit Down for This

I was going to take a picture... but then I got too excited and ate dessert before I remembered to do it.

I can't remember what we ate last weekend for feast meal.  Oh yeah, some sort of pork something or other.  It was fine.

Dessert, on the other hand, is going to be a favorite of mine for a while:

Basil Panna Cotta with Blackberry Gelee

...do not be intimidated by the name!  Or the recipe!  Make this and eat it.  You'll be happy you did.  Panna cotta is simply custard that is thickened with gelatin instead of eggs, flour, cornstarch, tapioca, or any of the other million things used as thickening agents.

2c. heavy whipping cream (for the love, if you're worried about dieting or calories, cut out doritos or fast food for a week).
1/4c. basil leaves, chopped
1/3c. sugar
1 pkg, or 1T, gelatin (made by the Knox company... you can find it at most grocery stores near the jello).
3T water

Heat 1c. of the cream (I always forget and heat both cups together) with the basil and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat.

Put the water in a small bowl and pour the gelatin over it.  Set aside for a minute.

Once the cream has started to steam from the top (not boil... but if it does, the world won't end even though - it's true - it can change the structure of the cream, though for this recipe the gelatin stabilizes it), turn it off, put the lid on the saucepan, and steep for 10-15 minutes until it smells delicious and basil-y.

Add the gelatin mixture to the cream/basil/sugar mixture.  Stir in the remaining 1c of cream.  Pour into glass bowls (or mason jars or ramekins) and put in the refrigerator.

...once you have done that, time for the gelee.  Again, gelee sounds more fancy than it is: it is basically a mixture of gelatin, sugar, and fruit.

1/4c sugar
1/2c blackberries
2T water
2t gelatin
2T water

First crush the blackberries with your newly-purchased mortar and pestle (seriously, haven't you gotten one yet?).  Put in a saucepan with the sugar and water.

Put the second 2T water in a small bowl and pour the gelatin over top.

Once the blackberry/sugar mixture is steaming, buzz them around in your food processor until uniform. Add the gelatin.

By this time, the panna cotta should have begun to set in the fridge.  Carefully (very carefully) pour the blackberry gelee over the top of the basil panna cotta.  If it looks like it's mixing in, STOP, it's not ready yet.  Leave the blackberry gelee on the countertop until the panna cotta has begun to set.  When it can stand having something on top of it, pour the gelee over top.  Allow to set for at least 2 hours.

YUM!

... for this week, our dear dear dear friend Julia will be visiting.  I think Ben is making some sort of south-of-the-border flank steak... I haven't begun thinking of what I want to have for dessert yet.  Maybe this (again)!

Creme Fraiche - I was so excited I couldn't stay on track.

Yes, dear friends, it is feast or famine with these blog posts.  BUT I JUST MADE CREME FRAICHE AND IT'S CHANGING MY WORLD... one creamy spoonful at a time.

To make, get a pint-sized mason (or ball... whatever) jar.  If you don't have any, go buy a LOT of them.  They are useful for making gifts, drinking out of (gin and tonics are our current beverage of choice), storing things, making pickles, etc.

When Ben and I first started canning, we asked family members for jars they weren't using, and I think we have somewhere around 100 jars, ranging in size from 4oz to 1G (64oz).  Whoa... that was a big distraction from my main point, which is: CREME FRAICHE.

To make it, get a pint-sized mason jar (oh yeah, now I'm back on track).
Mix equal parts heavy whipping cream and sour cream (buying these two individually is usually cheaper than buying creme fraiche at the store).  Since there are only two of us, I did 1/4c of each.

Shake in the jar to mix.  Put the lid on and leave on the counter overnight.  It will turn into an incredibly smooth, delicious treat that is slightly sweet and slightly tangy and dairy-delicious.  Refridgerate after it's overnight adventure on the countertop.

It is about the consistency of... marshmallow creme, but Ben will eat this willingly, and he looks down his nose at me every winter when I come home all excited because I finally broke down and bought a jar of that stuff to put on my hot chocolate (but, let's be honest, I mostly eat it out of the container with a spoon).  Did you know that marshmallow creme, which seems really nasty, doesn't have much in it except sugar, egg whites, and xanthan gum?

Back to the task at hand (again...).

What Should I Put it On?

I would eat it on shoe leather, but that's besides the point.

This afternoon, we ate it with fresh berries as a snack.  I bought some golden raspberries and some mulberries at the farmer's market here (which is AWESOME), and arranged a layer of goldens around the bottom, followed by mulberries, and one golden in the center.

It is also a great topping for scones or biscuits, which are probably Ben's favorite breakfast food (and he doesn't really like breakfast).

My cookbook automatically opens to this page.  I love Ben THAT much.

This is from Alice Waters' The Art of Simple Food 
1 1/2c. APF (all purpose flour)
1/4t salt
4t sugar
2t baking powder
6T (3/4 stick) cold butter, cut into small pieces
3/4HWC (heavy whipping cream - the reason I wake up most mornings)

Set your oven to 350.  Mix APF, salt, sugar, and baking powder.  Add the butter and mix with your fingers (get your hands in there, and squeeze the butter pieces flat as you mix the flour into them) until the mixture is uniform.  For the love of all things happy and holy, DO NOT use a pastry cutter.  This is why God gave you hands, friends.

(for your reading pleasure, I have put my soapboxes in italics so you can either get to cooking or be entertained, or both, more easily) Most pastry cutters live in kitchen graveyard drawers and, when they're needed, it goes like this: "Honey, have you seen the pastry cutter?"  "The what?"  "Oh... must not have one... better go buy a new one..." until the unsuspecting couple has eighteen pastry cutters and can't figure out where to find their measuring cups.  Tirade: done.  Use your hands.  

I will consent to let you pick up a wooden spoon for the next part: add the heavy cream into the flour/butter mixture.  Stir it around until it gets really hard to stir.  Flip the whole bowl upside down on the counter and smoosh it together with your fingers, kneading if you must to get the dough to come together.  It might be a little lumpy and have jaggedy edges.  Let it be.  The more you work this dough, the less light it is when you bake it.

Cut the biscuits.  I cut mine into squares because it is less messing with the dough.  Circles are fine, but the more you touch the dough, again, the less light it will be after baking.

Bake for 15-17 minutes or until the tops are lightly browned.

Ben eats these WITH BUTTER ON TOP.  It is absolutely appalling.  There is already 3/4 stick of butter in here!  As the one who typically gravitates towards fats and sugars in the relationship, I can't believe this man puts butter on - of all things - buttery biscuits.  Have I mentioned we have trouble finding pants small enough to fit him?  So perhaps this isn't so much appalling as it is amazing.  Okay, okay, yes, I am totally a hypocrite: I was advocating for you putting creme fraiche on these.  And I still do.  Before you do the Ben-Butter method, do try these with creme fraiche.  You won't be sad or sorry. I'm not either.

Ultimate Summer Dinner

This is what I'm hoping we eat for my birthday dinner (next week Tuesday I will be the big 30, and I'm totally excited for my 4th decade on earth!), but Ben is not telling me ANY of his plans for that day.  I have been working on him for several days now... and there is a bag in the bottom of the fridge that says, "No touchy, no looky (it's that time of year)."  Ben is mean, but in a good way.  He is impervious to my questions and whining.  "But what if it rots?"  "Then you can look inside before you throw it away."

Anyway, to our summer dinner:
1 loaf baugette bread (always squeeze your baugette gently in the store before you buy it... it should feel a little crunchy and firm to touch).
2 whole trout, heads on (be brave - you can do it!)
1lb green beans or asparagus

This is a salmon, not a trout, with asparagus...
Ben's parents were visiting, so we actually had someone to take pictures.
Until we get a camera, I'm trusting in all'y'all's imaginations.
We miss our fish mongers in Minneapolis.
We're coming back; save some fish for us, y'all.

Aioli
With this, I would drink a white wine or a rose (which I did not like for the longest time, but I am warming up to them), or throw in the towel and have gin and tonics.

Aioli recipe:
1 garlic clove
1 egg yolk
1/4-1/2c olive oil

You will need a mortar and pestle for this.  You can find these at reasonable prices at most Asian grocery stores.  It should either be made of wood (more finicky, harder to keep up) or stone (easier to clean, does not absorb flavors as easily).

Smash the garlic clove with the mortar and pestle until it is pulverized.  If you're having a bad day, it's a good time to make aioli.  It tastes good and relieves stress.

Add the egg yolk to the party, smash that in and stir it around until it is lemony-colored.

Drizzle the olive oil gradually, by droplets at first, and more quickly later.  If you add it too quickly, the aioli might "break" (i.e. the fats separate).  If it breaks, DON'T THROW IT AWAY.  Leave a little bit of the aioli in the mortar, reserving what you have poured out.  Add the failed mixture gradually back into it.

Your aioli is finished when there is a balance of flavors between garlic and olive oil and when it no longer tastes "eggy".  And yes, this involves raw eggs, so if you're pregnant or have a compromised immune system, it might not be the best time to eat it.  I might have to fudge this rule when I'm pregnant  (someday) if I can get my physician to ok it.  Wine I can give up.  Aioli and hollandaise will be a stretch.

Rub the trout with olive oil, salt and pepper the outside and inside.  Grill for 4-5 minutes on each side.
Rub the bread with olive oil (are you seeing a trend?), salt and pepper it.  Grill until browned on each side. (For timing purposes, have it ready when you put the fish on and start it after you have flipped the fish.)
Toss the beans or asparagus with olive oil, salt, and pepper.  Grill until browned on each side.  (For timing purposes, start these at the same time you start the bread.)

This is a beautiful dish that doesn't require cooking inside (a shout out to all of you in the Midwest who are roasting today - go find a lake, a stream, or something wet and cold to jump in, even if it's a kiddie pool full of ice - they're cheap - go buy one!).

If your guests are queasy about fish heads, they pull off easily once the fish has been cooked.  Just don't decapitate them at the dinner table.  Below the eyes and between the lips of the fish are the cheeks (where you'd expect them to be), and they are delicious.

Lemon Curd for Dessert!  This is from Alice Watters' The Art of Simple Food
4 lemons
zest from 1 lemon
2 eggs
3 egg yolks
2 T milk
1/3c. sugar
1/4t salt (unless you use salted butter)
6T butter, cut into small pieces

1) Zest one of the lemons.  Set zest aside.
2) Juice all of the lemons (it should be 1/2c... do NOT cheat and use store-bought lemon juice for this.)
3) Beat together eggs, yolks, milk, sugar, and salt.
4) Stir in the lemon juice and zest.
5) Add the butter.
6) Cook in a non-aluminum pan, stirring constantly over medium heat until it is thick enough to coat a spoon (and doesn't all run off).  It will seem like it will never happen.  Don't lose focus.  It happens quickly.  Do not let it boil, or you will have scrambled eggs.  If it starts to look a little chunky, remove from heat and whisk it vigorously.  If it looks a lot chunky, run it through a wire strainer.  Pour into a bowl or glass jars (the 8oz wide mouthed mason jars are beautiful with this!) and cool in the refrigerator.

To make this amazing dessert even more life changing, whip some heavy whipping cream with a little vanilla and sugar (i.e. make whipped cream) until it forms soft peaks (i.e. when you pull the whisk out of the cream the top of the peak folds over), and fold this into the lemon curd once it has cooled.  To fold in the eggs, I am a big fan of "lightening" the curd.  To do this, stir in a bit of the whipped cream.  Then, add the lemon curd and whipped cream, and using a vertical (as opposed to horizontal) circular motion, gently move the ingredients in circles until it is basically uniform.  The goal with "folding" is to not allow the whipped cream (or egg whites or whatever) lose any of the air that has been whipped into it.  It takes a bit of practice, but you can do it!

Eat and enjoy.  Say a prayer that whatever is in the bottom of my fridge is not something delicious that is rotting as I type.  Say a prayer for Ben, who has an endless amount of questions regarding my birthday coming at him (from me).

Dutch Mess... You're Going to have to Trust Me.

This is a summer favorite for my family... I don't know if it's Dutch, but it does look like a mess.  Ben is allowed to be part of the family - he loves it too.

1lb bacon, cut into chunks
apple cider vinegar, to taste (don't be shy - I start at at least 1/4c)
1 head lettuce
1 green onion, chopped
6 potatoes, cubed and boiled
2 hard boiled eggs


1) Start the potatoes and eggs boiling (hard boiled eggs: put eggs in cold water, place on stove, wait for water to come to a boil, boil 5 min, and voila!).
2) Fry the bacon, remove the bacon from the grease and put on a paper towel.  Set aside.
3) Add apple cider vinegar to the warm bacon grease.  Place lettuce in a big bowl and pour the bacon grease and apple cider vinegar over it (TRUST ME!)
4) After the potatoes fall apart when you stick a fork in them, make mashed potatoes (add 2T butter, salt, pepper, and 1/4-1/2c. milk).
5) Slice the eggs.
6) Mix all of the ingredients.  Taste... add vinegar if you can't sense the tang of it, and salt and pepper to taste.

...and no pictures, because we still have no camera.  Boo.  Hiss.  I have my sights on a shock-proof, water-proof, and freeze-proof Nikon (for those of you who didn't know, I dropped a digital camera off our car as we were going into Yellowstone National Park last August, and I dropped our replacement camera into a stream in Kenya... at least I dropped it because I was out doing something and not simply becuase I am my clumsy self (though I'm sure that plays into it)).